1. About the ILO
2. Topics
3. Regions
4. Meetings and events
5. Programmes and projects
6. Publications
7. Labour standards
8. Statistics and databases

Major Programme 230. Workers’ Activities

Summary of 1998-99 proposals and comparison with previous biennium (including funds from other sources)

230.1. As active partners in tripartite dialogue, trade unions play a fundamental role in translating the aspirations of workers into coherent and structured strategies at the national and international levels. They are one of the most relevant forces striving for universal respect for human rights and social justice and persevering to promote the values of solidarity and protect the weakest members of society, as laid down in the ILO’s Constitution. Their role is particularly important at a time when workers are confronted with complex challenges arising out of the globalization of the economy and increased worldwide competition. In this context, trade unions urgently need to develop new and effective responses to such fundamental and diverse issues as: the liberalization of capital markets; the expansion of trade; structural adjustment programmes and economic integration processes; the introduction of new technologies and information processing; significant changes in the organization of work; the fragmentation of labour and production patterns; the impact of demographic changes on social welfare systems; the protection of health and safety and the environment; migrations; and the continued growth of the informal sector and non-traditional forms of employment, such as part-time work, home work, contract labour and teleworking.

230.2. The objective of this major programme is the strengthening of representative, independent and democratic trade unions and the enhancement of their capacity to participate effectively in tripartite dialogue with a view to promoting workers’ rights. In addition to maintaining close relations between the ILO and workers’ organizations, assistance will be provided to trade unions in the form of advisory services and support for technical cooperation activities, particularly with a view to strengthening workers’ education programmes and the other services supplied by trade unions to their members. The specialists in workers’ activities in the multidisciplinary advisory teams and the regional specialists in workers’ education will play a major role in the attainment of these objectives in the light of the active partnership policy and on the basis of requests for assistance originating in the field and through consultations with international trade union organizations.

230.3. The resources for this major programme are reduced by some $113,000, mainly because of an economy in the provision for printing of documents and publications.

230.4. Extra-budgetary resources amounting to some $12 million are expected to become available for technical cooperation activities in the key areas covered by the major programme. These activities will be designed and implemented in close cooperation with trade unions in both recipient and donor countries. In addition, RBTC resources amounting to some $4.5 million will be made available to support the operational activities of the major programme either in full or on a cost-sharing basis with the beneficiary organizations and with other major programmes.

Relations and general workers’ education

230.5. The objectives of this subprogramme are that: ILO activities are designed and implemented in full awareness of trade union priorities and policies; trade unions are familiar with and continue to support ILO objectives and programmes; and infrastructures are developed by trade unions for the delivery of workers’ education programmes and activities.

230.6. The involvement and participation of women workers in the activities of the major programme will continue to be strengthened and the inclusion of gender and equality concerns in all activities will be closely monitored. There will be a focal point on gender issues, and a regional seminar on women’s participation in trade unions will be held in Africa for men and women representatives from national centres.

230.7. The activities of the subprogramme aimed at maintaining close relations between the ILO and workers’ organizations will continue to include: advising the Director-General and programme managers on the current policies and priorities of trade unions on matters that lie within the competence of the ILO; providing assistance to the Workers’ group of the Governing Body and the Conference and to workers’ delegations to ILO meetings; supporting and coordinating all the activities of the regional and technical major programmes on behalf of workers’ organizations; keeping trade unions throughout the world informed about ILO activities, programmes and policies through a regular supply of publications and communications; and representing the ILO at general and sectoral conferences and conventions of workers’ organizations throughout the world.

230.8. The development of workers’ education programmes requires the sound identification of the educational needs of workers and trade union organizations, and the effective management of the respective institutions and programmes. Advisory services and assistance, including seminars and other training activities, will therefore continue to be provided for the planning, management and operation of workers’ education programmes. Fellowships, grants and contributions are also an important form of assistance in this respect and will continue to be provided to facilitate the participation of trade union representatives in training events. Study programmes will be organized in Geneva and elsewhere for trade union groups and individuals from both industrialized and developing countries. Advanced training courses will be held in the Turin Centre, in accordance with the needs of the programme. These activities will be supported and complemented by action-oriented research, the dissemination of information using new technologies and the development of guides and manuals. These materials, and particularly the manual on economics, will be revised to take into account current developments in the world economy. Four issues a year of the Labour Education journal will be published in English, French and Spanish, with each issue being devoted to a specific subject.

230.9. Provision is also made under this subprogramme for activities to strengthen the services provided by trade unions with regard to migrant workers and rural workers. Taking account of the study and teaching materials prepared as a contribution to the 1994-95 interdepartmental project on migrant workers, a regional workshop will be organized in Asia for trade union leaders and educators on the problems of such workers. In view of the high percentage of workers in developing countries who are active in the rural sector, support will continue to be provided to rural workers with a view to strengthening their initiatives to develop representative organizations and education programmes and enhancing their incomes through special economic and social services.

Workers’ organizations and the
global economy

230.10. The growing importance of multinational enterprises and the increased integration of labour markets are giving rise to new and complex issues for trade unions, which still tend to be rooted in their national contexts. In response, trade unions around the world have been developing and experimenting with innovative strategies to mitigate the most undesirable aspects of globalization. These include: the development of the necessary capacities and a climate that is conducive to transnational collective bargaining with multinational enterprises; the establishment of linkages and common campaign strategies on social and labour issues, including the social dimension of the liberalization of trade; the implementation of codes of conduct for major enterprises and their suppliers; the adoption of social and labour charters, or side agreements, to complement regional free trade agreements; and the exchange of information and the establishment of common databases.

230.11. The objective of this subprogramme is the development of a more effective response by trade unions to the issues arising out of the globalization of the world’s economies. With a view to achieving this objective, advisory services will be provided, research carried out, information disseminated and training events organized in the spirit of the ILO’s Tripartite Declaration of Principles on Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy and the relevant ILO standards. In these activities, emphasis will be placed on strengthening cooperation with international trade union organizations. Special attention will be paid to workers in export processing zones, where basic trade union rights are severely restricted and the enforcement of national legislation is inadequate.

230.12. The globalization of the economy makes international labour standards more relevant than ever. There is therefore a continued need to strengthen understanding and knowledge of the ILO and its standards among workers and their organizations. National and subregional seminars will be organized and suitable information and training materials produced and disseminated. Emphasis will be placed on a selected number of labour standards of particular importance to trade unions, including those on forced labour, freedom of association, rural workers’ organizations, tripartite consultation, discrimination, equal remuneration and minimum age. A booklet outlining the contents of a number of Conventions, including references to the jurisprudence of the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations and the Committee on Freedom of Association, will be published and translated into local languages. Trade union proposals for action to improve the application of international labour standards and strengthen the ILO supervisory mechanisms will be discussed at an interregional seminar for 30 workers’ organizations from developing countries, where representatives of industrialized countries will also be invited to share their experience. A regional seminar on social protection will also be held for leaders and educators of workers’ organizations from Central and Eastern Europe.

Child labour

230.13. The active participation of worker constituents in ILO activities to combat child labour is of paramount importance, particularly in the context of the ILO’s increased involvement in this cause and the decision by the Governing Body to include the issue of child labour on the agenda of the 1998 Conference with a view to the adoption of standards. The objective of these activities is the translation of the workers’ commitment to the abolition of child labour into concrete action, including campaigns for the ratification of Conventions Nos. 29 and 138, through closer cooperation between the trade union movement and the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) and other relevant ILO action programmes. Educational materials will be developed, awareness-raising activities carried out and support provided for the efforts of trade unions in this respect, particularly through the workers’ specialists in the multidisciplinary advisory teams and the staff of the major programme in the field.

New technologies and trade union work

230.14. Today’s enterprises keep in permanent contact with subsidiaries located at the other end of the world as though they were both situated in the same building. A prodigious and uninterrupted flow of data circulates through their telecommunications networks and ensures that they are in a position to adapt quickly to demand and economic developments in order to supply quality products and services at the best possible price. The same technology can and should be introduced by trade unions to shape their responses at the national and international levels. Indeed, telematics — the combination of information technology and telecommunications — provides opportunities for trade unions to improve not only their administration and management, but practically every area of their activities. The current trade union deficit with regard to information technology can be addressed through relatively simple and low-cost operations. A survey undertaken in 1994 on how trade unions use telematics found that more than 200 trade union centres systematically make use of various forms of electronic mail. The principal areas in which their operations can be strengthened through the introduction of telematics include bargaining information services, solidarity campaigns and trade union organization and education.

230.15. The objective in this respect is that trade unions review their traditional methods of work in terms of communications and information management with a view to strengthening their response to the serious challenges posed by the revolution in information technology. In order to achieve this objective, international, subregional and national seminars and workshops will be organized on the major implications of the introduction of telematics for trade  unions  and  the  communications  deficit between trade unions in industrialized and developing countries. Training courses will be organized for trade union staff and representatives on the applications of telematics for research and education purposes, including the training of trainers, and in trade union administration, communications and services. The courses will also cover advanced telecommunications techniques for trade union information technology staff. Technical assistance, including training programmes, will be provided for the development of international databases on labour issues. Support will also be provided for the establishment of international networks of trade union research staff with expertise in the identification, retrieval and interpretation of information. Programmes of distance learning for trade unionists will be established and suitable information and teaching materials produced for trade union educators and administrators. The establishment of appropriate trade union technical assistance and coordination structures will be supported and encouraged, taking maximum advantage of the expertise already existing within the trade union movement.

Informal sector, home work and
contract labour

230.16. Workers in the informal sector are deprived of virtually any form of social protection. The continuous development of the informal sector requires renewed action by workers’ organizations to minimize and counteract its effects on the social fabric. The trade union movement is aware of this challenge and is developing closer links with organizations of the informal sector to exert combined pressure for the improvement of the working conditions and social protection of workers in the sector. Another major trend over recent years has been the fragmentation of the labour market and the emergence of “atypical” forms of employment. Although home work and contract labour designate different categories of workers and distinct employment relationships, they have a number of common features and have developed against a background of informality. Workers in both categories are generally unorganized, and not effectively protected by the law, have poor access to social security and often work more hours and receive lower wages than employed workers.

230.17. Assistance will continue to be provided to trade unions to help informal sector workers to establish their own organizations and develop existing organizations. Research and training activities will be undertaken in fields such as education, vocational training, legal assistance, self-help schemes and information services on social protection for informal sector workers. A regional seminar will be held for Latin American trade union representatives to exchange information and develop suitable strategies to address the problems of workers in the informal sector. Research and training activities will also be carried out to support trade union efforts to organize homeworkers and workers engaged under contract labour. These activities, supported by the production of teaching materials, will concentrate on the creation of greater awareness among both categories of workers of the relevance to their situation of international labour standards, collective bargaining, occupational safety and health provisions and social security schemes.

International Symposium on Trade Unions
and the Informal Sector

230.18. An International Symposium will be held in Geneva for five days to examine trade union action to further the interests of workers in the informal sector, homeworkers and workers engaged under contract labour. The Symposium will suggest measures that could be adopted and will draw up a specific agenda for consideration by trade unions to deal with the above categories of workers. Thirty trade union leaders and educators from developing and industrialized countries will be invited to participate in the Symposium ($153,000).